Kennedy Blake ran the flat iron through her sleek brown hair once more before unplugging it and inspecting herself in the mirror. Her hair was perfect, not a single strand out of place and her makeup was absolutely flawless; not a smear or smudges anywhere near her pretty blue eyes. She had gone and tanned this morning, so her skin looked freshly sun-kissed despite the fact that it was the middle of winter. That just left getting ready, and she had the perfect new outfit to wear to Zero Point tonight.

Hanging up on the back of her bedroom door was a short and tight, one shoulder black dress. It was simple, but classy in Kennedy’s opinion, and when she put it on she was more than thrilled with the outcome. The fabric hugged her curves perfectly. Her stilettos were the icing to the cake. She looked sexy and dangerous, and much younger than any twenty-five year old would. She turned a few times in front of the mirror, admiring herself. In the distance, she could hear her home phone ringing, but she ignored it, figuring that if it was important, whoever was calling would leave a message, and then grabbed her black clutch purse and headed out the door of her rather extravagant town house.

She walked down the stairs and onto the sidewalk, looking at the busy streets of New York City and biting her lip slightly. The second she caught sight of a cab, she ran up to the edge of sidewalk and waved her arm to get the drivers attention. The cab pulled up next to her and she got in the back.

“Where are we headed?” Asked the vaguely Middle Eastern looking cabbie.

“Zero Point.” She told him. The man gave Kennedy and nod and pulled away from the curb and back into the traffic. During the ride, she couldn’t help but think about how lucky she was.

Though the first few years of her life weren’t the best, Kennedy had to admit that things had turned out great for her. She had been adopted by a rather rich couple who wanted to use her for publicity purposes. They gave her everything she wanted; spoiling her and making sure that she had only the best of everything. Eventually, they began to think of her as their own daughter. They paid for her college, they owned the ritzy town house complex that she was now living in, which meant that she was living their rent free. They gave her money to start her own business, and Kennedy created her own fashion line. She was living the life. Around the time when she was turning 22, her adoptive parents adopted another little girl. Kennedy fell out of touch with them, and only saw them around the Holliday times after that. She had only met the little girl a handful of times, and couldn’t even remember her name.

The cab stopped in front Zero Point, and Kennedy shook away her thoughts, and put on a smile. She paid the cabbie and stepped out onto the curb, looking to the left where a line of wannabe’s stood awaiting their chance to be let into the newest and most exclusive club in New York. She walked past them and right up to the bouncer, earning her a lot of glares, and gave him a smile. “Good evening, Tommy.” She said, batting her eyelashes a little. She knew that he would let her in not matter what though, for she was a celebrity and the club needed the publicity.

“Hello, Miss Blake. Go right in.” Said the burly man as he unlatched the velvet rope. Kennedy thanked him and strode in, the music instantly filling her ears.

The club was alive and thriving, just the way she liked it. Up in the DJ booth, she saw her best friend and favorite DJ Evan rocking out like it was nobody’s business. It made her chuckle a bit, and she began pushing through the crowed so that she could go and talk to him for a little bit. When she arrived at the door, she was stopped by security, but once she gave them her name, she was let right through without any ID needed. Kennedy climbed the stairs until she reached the top, and snuck up behind the young Asian and hugged him tightly around the middle.

Shocked, Evan turned around and looked at Kennedy with surprise first, but then smiled and hugged her back.

“Hey girl hey!” He exclaimed with glee, flipping his pink streaked bangs out of his face. “What are you doing here? I thought you had a major meeting with a fab-oo client tomorrow morning.” He said, crossing his arms.

Kennedy shrugged her shoulders. “They canceled. The wife wants to stay in Paris for another week, so we rescheduled for next Thursday, which means that I now have a very long weekend!” She exclaimed. Evan smiled and nodded his head in approval.

“Good! I’m having a party Saturday night at the Clifton. It’s very formal. I expect you to be there. Now go get a drink and get out on the dance floor so that I can play your favorite tunes.” He told her, pushing her towards the stairs. Kennedy laughed loudly and nodded, leaving him and going back out into the club.

She made her way across the room to where the bar was. All the bartenders knew her, so most of her drinks came free, except for the more expensive liquors that were imported from exotic countries. She ordered fruity tasting liquor, and that first sip was the last thing that she remembered that night…



The phone ringed on and on and on, causing Kennedy to groan and roll over in her bed in hopes that maybe the sound would go away. It did, but the ringing was replaced with a voice coming through the answering machine.

“Hello. This is Dr. Santiago from Lexon Hill Hospital. I’m calling on behalf of Charles and Marcia Reynolds and their daughter Madeline Ryan. They were in a car accident early this morning and I’m afraid there are some complications. I’m going to need you to come down to the hospital. If you have any questions, please call 254-697-7782. If not, please get down her as soon as possible. This is urgent. When you arrive, please report to the third floor and speak with our nurse at the front desk. Thank you.”
Kennedy sat straight up in shock. There is absolutely no way she could have heard that correctly. Springing to her feet, she nearly ran out to her living room, ignoring the migraine she had, and hit the answering machine to replay the message. She listened to it over and over until finally the words were sinking in.
Immediately, she looked around the room, spotting her shoes sprawled out by the front door and her purse resting on her side table. She quickly grabbed everything and ran out the door. She was pulling her shoes on as she half hopped onto the sidewalk, and when she had them secure, waved down a cab. She got in and told him where to go and then leaned back and took a deep breath. Everything would be alright; she just had to think positive.

During the ride, she took the time to smooth out her appearance so that she didn’t look completely terrible when she arrived at the hospital. She fixed her makeup and ran her fingers through her hair in an attempt to make it look a little less ratty. It seemed to take forever, but eventually, the cabbie pulled up in front of the hospital and in a flash, Kennedy was out of the car and running through the doors. She quickly made her way to the third floor and did just as the doctor had instructed.

“Hi, I’m looking for my parents and sister.” She said, startling the nurse that sat behind the front desk.

“Uh, are you Kennedy Blake?” The nurse asked, looking down some papers. Kennedy nodded and the nurse got a rather concerned look on her face. “Why don’t you go have a seat in the waiting room, and I’ll let Dr. Santiago know that you’re here.” She said, pointing at the quaint little room across the hallway. Kennedy sighed and turned, walking to the waiting room and slumping down in chair. She closed her eyes and suddenly became aware of her pounding head again. She opened her eyes again and shook her head slightly, trying not to think too much.

It was a half an hour before a handsome, young Latino man wearing a white lab coat with a stethoscope hanging around his neck. Kennedy stood up and looked at him with eagerness.

“Hello, Miss Blake, I’m presuming. I’m Dr. Santiago.” He said, holding out his hand. Kennedy reached over and shook it.

“What’s going on? Is everyone okay?” She asked.

“Madeline is alright. She’s got a few cuts and bruises, but she’s otherwise okay.” The doctor said.

“What about my parents?” Kennedy pushed, crossing her arms. She watched as a grim look grew on his face.

“I’m very sorry, Miss Blake. I tried to preform emergency surgery on them, but it was too late. They’ve passed away.”

Kennedy felt her heart break and just stood there in absolute shock. A small tear rolled down her cheek and she shook her head slightly, sitting down in the nearest chair. “So what’s going to happen with Madeline?” She asked quietly.

“Well… we’ll have to place her in your care for the time being.” He said, frowning slightly, and instantly, Kennedy’s head snapped up and she shook it back and forth violently.

“No. There’s no way that I can take care of her. I’ve never taken care of a kind in my entire life. My life doesn’t have to room for her. I go to parties and fly all over the world for work and I have fun. That’s what my life is about.” She told him.

“Well I seriously suggest that you make room for this little girl. She’s your sister, whether you like it or not, and she just lost her parents as well. Madeline is going to need you.” The doctor said, turning away and beginning to walk out of the waiting room. “You need to grow up.” He added.



A social worker brought the little redheaded freckled faced girl to the lobby of the hospital only a few days after the funeral. Dr. Santiago had requested that she come back for a couple days so that they could run a few more tests just to stay on the safe side.
When the little girl came running up to her and wrapped her arms around Kennedy’s legs, she was shocked.
The social worker walked up to the two and handed Kennedy a folder that was filled with papers. “This is everything you’ll need to know about your sister.” Kennedy took it and opened it, scanning the first page and nodding her head slightly. She placed her hand on Madeline’s head and smoothed out the six year olds hair, smiling softly.
“Thank you very much. I think that we’ll be alright.” She said. She tucked the folder into the overly large leather purse that she had brought, and then picked Madeline up. The little girl wrapped her arms around Kennedy’s neck and rested her head on Kennedy’s shoulder. It made Kennedy’s heart melt.
“We will be by next month for a visit. It’s just a required check-up to make sure that Madeline is doing alright and that you’re providing a good home and stability for her. If you have any questions, refer to her file, and if you can’t find the answer, give me a call.” The social worker said, smiling. Kennedy nodded her head and the two said their goodbyes.


When they arrived at the townhouse, Madeline was more than excited. She ran through the door when Kennedy unlocked it and looked around eagerly. “Kenny!” She called from the kitchen while Kennedy was busy taking her heels off. “Kenny, come here!” She called again.
In the kitchen, Madeline was standing on her tiptoes near the counter, reaching up and trying to grab a box of chocolates that were sitting there. It made Kennedy chuckle a little bit. She picked the little girl up and grabbed the chocolates and headed to the living room. She sat down on the couch with Madeline in her lap and opened the box, handing it to the little girl and then reaching over and grabbing the remote.
“What do you like to watch?” Kennedy asked, opening up the guide and scrolling through it.
“SpongeBob.” The little girl replied through a mouthful of chocolate.
This is going to be much too easy. Kennedy thought to herself with a grin. Though she was still upset about her parents passing, she felt that with Madeline around, it would be just a little better.
Her phone buzzed, and Kennedy took it out of her pocket and looked at it, her eyes widening. Evan’s party was tomorrow, and there was no way that she could miss it. But she needed a dress, because it was a formal event. Maybe this would be a chance to get a little bonding in with her adoptive sister. Then the thought occurred to her that she would need someone to watch the little girl tomorrow night. Sighing, she shook her head and took a deep breath. She would figure it out.
“Hey, Madeline, do you like shopping?” Kennedy asked, looking down at the girl. She watched as the redhead nodded and smiled.
“Mommy used to take me to get clothes all the time.” She said.
“Well, I need to get a dress for tomorrow night. Do you want to come? And afterwards maybe we can go get you some clothes and then ice cream.” Kennedy suggested. Madeline nodded and crawled off of Kennedy’s lap, running towards her shoes. The little girl sat down on the floor and pulled them on. Kennedy followed her and slipped on a pair of comfortable flats, and then grabbed her purse and keys and took the little girls hand, leading her out of the townhouse.
It took them about an hour to get downtown in rush hour traffic. But when they arrived, the little girl got out of the cab and looked around in awe, as if she’d never been to the shopping district of New York. “I’ve been working on a design at my shop that I finished last week. That might be a good dress for this event.” Kennedy said, taking the girls hand and heading towards a store called Charisma. Inside, it carried all the various fashion lines that Kennedy had designed for this season. Kennedy walked past all the clothes, greeting the store manager, and then walked through a set of double doors. Behind the doors was Kennedy’s office, the place where she worked on all of her new designs. In the corner of the room, hanging up on a mannequin, was a gorgeous deep purple gown.
It was strapless and form fitting with lots of rouging through the mid-section. The form fitting extended down to about her mid-thing and then turned into a mermaid flare with tulle peeping out around the bottom. Kennedy picked Madeline up and set her down in one of the office chairs and told her to stay put. She then went to the mannequin and took the dress off of it, and slipped into her personal dressing room, quickly stripping and putting on the dress. When she came out, Madeline clapped.
“Pretty!” The little girl exclaimed. Kennedy chuckled slightly and twirled in front of the mirror.
“It is very pretty.” Kennedy replied. “With the right jewelry, I think it’ll be perfect for the party.” She said, more to herself than to Madeline. She then went and changed back into her normal clothes and then wrapped the dress up, putting it in a nice box with wrapping and everything. She took it out of the design room, Madeline in tow, and gave it to the manager with specific instructions that it be delivered to her house at exactly 1 p.m. on Saturday.

“Alright, you ready to get ice cream?” Kennedy asked, looking down at the little girl and holding out her hand. Madeline grabbed Kennedy’s hand and smiled, nodding eagerly.

The ice cream place wasn’t that far, only a couple blocks away. It didn’t take the two very long to walk there. Kennedy picked Madeline up so that she could see inside the display case to view the flavors of ice cream.

“What kind do you want?” Kennedy asked.

“The pink one!” The little girl exclaimed, pointing to the strawberry ice cream.

“No sweetie. I’m sorry but you can’t have the pink one. You’re allergic to strawberries.” Kennedy told her. Madeline, thought a bit upset, settled on vanilla instead. The two got their cones and left, a smile on both their faces…



Saturday night came before she knew it, and there stood Kennedy at 6 O’clock in her kitchen looking absolutely gorgeous and giving very specific instructions to a woman who was recommended to her by a friend to watch Madeline.

“Right, so that’s basically everything. If there’s anything that you’re even a little unsure about, refer to her file, which I’ve left on the dining room table, and if you can’t find the answer, call me.” Kennedy said, looking at the little girl who was sitting on the couch watching cartoons. “I’m leaving, Maddie. I won’t be back until after you’re in bed, so I’ll see you in the morning. Love you!” She called, heading towards the door.

She turned to the woman, Margaret, and looked her over once more just to make sure that Madeline was in good hands. “I call around nine to check in.” And with that, she was gone.



It was around eight when Kennedy got a phone call from Margaret. She had been having a great time at the party, and everyone was happy to see her. Sighing, she extracted herself from the group and went to a quieter spot to answer the phone.

“Hello?” She said, crossing her one arm over her chest.

“Kennedy! I’m on the way to the hospital with Madeline! Her throat is swelling up and she can’t breathe. She’s having an allergic reaction to someone.” Margaret said, sounding like she was in tears.

“I’ll be right there.” Kennedy said, snapping her phone shut. She went into panic mode then, looking around the room for the nearest exit. She saw the front doors and immediately headed straight for them. She pushed through the crowds of people, ignoring people’s protests and disgruntled remarks, and ran to the street, signaling for the first cab she saw to stop.

She arrived at the hospital emergency within a half an hour. Kennedy ran into the waiting room, looking around and seeing Margaret, but not Kennedy. She walked up to the woman and glared at her.

“What did you give her for diner?” The girl snapped. Margaret literally quivered a bit, frightened by Kennedy’s behavior.

“Chicken nuggets, steamed carrots, and she asked for some strawberries-” Kennedy cut her off.

“I told you to look in her file!” She screamed. “If you would have looked in her file you would have seen that she’s allergic to strawberries!”

“Ma’am, please don’t yell at me…” Margaret replied, leaning away from her.

“Excuse me, are you Madeline’s mom?” Said someone from behind Kennedy, tapping on her shoulder. Kennedy glared at Margaret and then sighed, turning to see a nurse standing there with a clipboard.

“I’m her sister and legal guardian.” She responded. The nurse handed her the clipboard.

“She’s doing just fine. It was just an allergic reaction that the doctor was able to get under control in no time. I just need you to fill out a couple of forms, and then you can go see her. We’ll have her discharged in no time.” The nurse informed her. Kennedy breathed a sigh of relief and nodded her head, sitting down in the nearest seat.

“You can go, Margaret.” She snapped at the other woman. Margaret was out of there before she even finished her sentence.

Kennedy filled out all the papers and turned them into the nurse, who in turn took her back to Kennedy’s room. The little girl was sitting on the bed, already dressed, and looked absolutely fine. When she saw Kennedy, she frowned slightly.

“I’m sorry that I ruined your party…” She said quietly. Kennedy kneeled in front of Madeline and hugged her tight.

“You didn’t. You’re much more important to me than some stupid party. I never should have left you with that woman.” Kennedy said. “I promise that I won’t ever let anything happen to you ever again…”


3 Months Later

The doorbell rang and Kennedy got up from her place on the couch and walked to the front hall, pulling open the door and smiling when her eyes landed upon Evan.

“Hey Madeline, guess who’s here!” She called.

“Uncle Evan!” The little girl squealed, getting up and running to the door. She jumped into the guys arms and he laughed, picking her up and spinning her around before he set her back down.

“He Squirt. I came to talk to Kennedy for a little bit. Why don’t you go finish watching your cartoon, and maybe then we’ll all go out for ice cream.” He told her. Madeline smiled and nodded and went back to the couch, laying down and hugging her teddy bear as she got re-enthralled with the movie she had on.

“Come on in, I’ll get you some coffee.” Kennedy said, leading him to the kitchen. She grabbed two mugs and filled each with coffee, lots of creamer, and pinch of sugar. She then sat down at the dining room table, across from Evan, and smiled.

“So I’m having a little garden party next Sunday, and I want you and Maddie to come!” He said, taking a sip of his coffee.

“That sounds fun. We’ll definitely be there.” Kennedy told him, nodding her head slightly. “We’ve been really busy with work lately, but we always have time to fit in Uncle Evan.” She joked, smiling brightly.

“Speaking of which, I haven’t seen you out at the clubs at all lately. What have you been up to?” Evan asked, tilting his head in curiosity.

Kennedy thought about her answer for a moment and then gave him a simple shrug and a smile.

“I’ve been growing up.”